October 2014 Tennis Tidbits by Hugh Wheeler

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Oct. 21, 2014: Next Tennis Club General Meeting
Nov. 5, 2014: Lobster Dinner, if someone volunteers to do it.
Nov. 16, 2014: Fall picnic hosted by Deuces Wild.
Dec. 7, 2014: Wimbledon Tournament, 9 am to 4 pm.

Some tidbits about the history of tennis:

The history of tennis goes way back to ancient Egypt and Persia (now Iran and Afghanistan).
Ancient pictures of a game where a ball was hit over a net exist.

The name tennis goes back to a French game, where they would yell “Tenez” before they hit a serve with a bare hand (rackets were not used). Tenez could translate “take heed”.

Gloves began to be used, and then rackets by the 16th century.

In 1555, an Italian priest wrote the first known book about tennis.

The history of modern tennis began in 19th century Britain with a man named Major Walter Wingfield. He called the game “sphairistike”, a Greek word meaning skill at playing ball. (How would you like to say I have a sphairistike match today?) Wingfield’s game was soon called “sticky.” He tried to patent it in 1874 with an eight-page rule book called “Sphairistike or Lawn Tennis” but he couldn’t enforce his patent.

Racket comes from the Arabic “rakhat”, meaning the palm of the hand.

Deuce comes from “a deux le jeu”, meaning “to both is the game” (that is, the two players have
equal scores). The reason for the numbering of scores “15”, “30”, and “40” is unknown but may have been to originally represent the quarters of a clock at 15, 30, and 45 (later changed to 40).

The four Majors or Grand Slam tournaments, the biggest competitions on the tennis circuit, are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open. Winning these four in the same year is called the Grand Slam (a term borrowed from bridge).

In 1926, the first professional tennis tour began with American and French players playing exhibition matches to paying audiences. Once a player turned pro, he or she could not compete in the major (amateur) tournaments. This all changed in 1968, the beginning of the current Open Era, in which all players, pro and amateur, could compete in all tournaments, and the top players could make a living at tennis (a rather nice living, it turns out).

Source: Wikipedia, the History of Tennis, 2014 (emphasis added).

The next general meeting will be October 21, 2014, at 9:00 am in the Rec Hall.

September 2014 Tennis Tidbits                    by Hugh Wheeler

 

UPCOMING EVENTS:

 

Oct. 21, 2014:  Next Tennis Club General Meeting

Nov. 5, 2014:  Lobster Dinner, if someone volunteers to do it.

Nov. 16, 2014:  Fall picnic hosted by Deuces Wild.

Dec. 7, 2014:  Wimbledon Tournament, 9 am to 4 pm.

 

THIS AND THAT:  RESOURCES

 Considering getting a new tennis racquet?  Tennis Warehouse has a demo program

available through their website.  You can try out up to four racquets at a time.  There is no

charge to do this.  All you have to do is pay return UPS shipping (as little as $10 for one

racquet or up to $20 for four racquets).  You can keep the racquets for up to one week after you

receive them.  For more information, check their website:

          http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/demoprogram.html

 Great resource for all things tennis (and other sports); Holabird Sports:

          http://www.holabirdsports.com/

 

 USTA Handbook of Rules and Regulations .  Friend at Court, the 2014 USTA Handbook of Tennis Rules and Regulations, is available online for free download.  Here is the link:

http://assets.usta.com/assets/1/15/2014FAC_final.2.pdf

 

 Another great site for information about tennis rules:

          http://www.usta.com/Improve-Your-Game/Rules/TheFinalWord/

This site contains answers to specific questions about the rules of tennis.  It currently

contains answers to questions submitted in 2012-14.  Links to knowledge areas include:

distractions/interference, doubles, equipment and gear, etiquette, injuries, and serving/

receiving.  You can submit your own “burning” question about tennis rules!

 

 

          The next general meeting will be October 21, 2014, at 9:00 am in the Rec Hall.